Top US, Russian diplomats to meet in Hamburg

By Diyar Guldogan

ANKARA (AA) - U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov are to meet on Friday at the G20 summit in Germany, the U.S. State Department said.

Tillerson said on Thursday Russia bore a "special responsibility" for ensuring stability in Syria and bringing an end to the conflict.

"The U.S is prepared to explore the possibility of establishing with Russia joint mechanisms for ensuring stability, including no-fly zones, on-the-ground cease-fire observers and coordinated delivery of humanitarian assistance," he added.

According to Russia's official TASS news agency, Lavrov said on Thursday Moscow previously presented a proposal on Syria to Washington.

"We have already requested but have not received a reply so far," Lavrov told reporters after talks with his French counterpart, Jean-Yves Le Drian in Paris.

Lavrov said the question is which no-fly zones are implied since they have not been mentioned in the past, TASS reported.

He added the aim of Tillerson's statement was to step up Russian-U.S. cooperation.

A first face-to-face meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his American counterpart Donald Trump will also take place on sidelines of the Hamburg summit.